Door latch



Feb. 12, 1963 v H. v. ETTORE ET AL 3,077,359

DOOR LATCH Filed Feb. 15, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIGURE I FIGURE JI INVENTORS HAROLD V. ETTORE FREDERICK RICHARD ASHBY ATTORNEY.

Feb. 12, 1963 H. v. ETTORE ETAI. 3,077,359

DOOR LATCH Filed Feb. 15, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIGURE 11]:

FIGURE II INVENTORS HAROLD v. ETTORE FREDERICK RICHARD ASHBY ATTORNEY.

United States Patent 3,077,359 DOOR LATCH Harold V. Ettore, Yorktown Heights, and Frederick Richard Ashby, Carmel, N.Y., assignors to United States Plywood Corporation, New York, N.Y., a corporation of New York Filed Feb. 15, 1961, Ser. No. 89,506 1 Claim. (Cl. 292-3) The present invention is broadly concerned with a unique method and apparatus for mounting and latching doors to openings such as closets, wardrobes, cabinets, storage spaces of various kinds, and openings between adjoining rooms, and the like. The invention is more specifically concerned with a particular type of door hardware for positively controlling the opening and closing of a door, which door is a surface mounted door and is characterized in that the door overlaps the sides of the opening. The hardware of the present invention is specifically characterized in that the escutcheon plate is U-type in structure, permitting the same to be positioned about the edge of the surface mounted door. An emergency unlocking slide fits into the escutcheon plate permitting ready unlocking.

A recent development in the art in the hanging and positioning of doors to openings such as closets, passageways between rooms, and the like, is that a stock door is applied over the door opening in standard sizes as it is milled whereby the door overlaps the opening. This eliminates planing, fitting, and mortising of the door in.

order to provide the tolerances for the door to operate properly. Furthermore, there is no mortising required for the hinges, nor are wood jambs, stops, or face trimming necessary. The extent to which the door overlaps the opening may vary appreciably and may vary from A to 3" or more; however, a preferred overlapping is about 2". These doors are shaped in various sizes and designs. For example, one type of surface mounted door may consist of two 8' high hardwood plywood skins which are bonded on the outside long edges. These units are shipped to the job site in multiple units and may be com pletely pre-finished. The respective skins of the door may be opened by the insertion of an 8' long parting member after it has been cut to size as a sheet of plywood. These multiple units generally are 4' by 8 panels which are stripped from top to bottom at the various widths. From this, the completely pre-finished 8' panel which is shipped flat and at any number to a package, can be cut to a variety of door sizes depending upon need. These doors are particularly desirable in matching various wall paneling and thereby offer an unbroken sweep of attractive hardwood. These doors, as pointed out heretofore, require no jamb or trim and, thus, lend themselves to appreciable saving in construction cost.

However, one disadvantage of these types of surface mounted doors is that no adequate and satisfactory type of hardware for latching and securing the door is presently available. Thus, the present invention provides a unique, effective latching assembly. The hardware of the present invention may be readily installed by a builder with a minimum of labor. For example, one hole may be drilled through the door at the selected height for locating the escutcheon plate. The escutcheon plate is then anchored to the door by assembling the door pulls. The lock set assembly is easily installed by locating the same at the proper position with respect to the escutcheon plate and then fastening with two or more screws. The lock set assembly is so positioned that the spring loaded fasteners in the lock set assembly will engage in the recesses of the escutcheon plate.

The hardware of the present invention permits the mechanical closing action of the hardware and is substantiaily maintenance'free and is not subject. to failure due to parts wearing or breaking in service. The present design, in essence, consists of only four moving parts. Also, the present invention permitsthe positive locking of the door by means of. a privacy bolt, which bolt can be released when necessary by means of an emergency unlocking slide. Furthermore, the hardware of the present invention does not require a keyto open the lock and the design permits positive closure, positive locking, and an emergency opening slide.

The present invention maybe readily understood by reference to the drawings illustrating embodiments of the same. FIGURE I is a front view of a lock set assembly. FIGURE II is a rear view of the lock set assembly with the back plate removed, illustrating elements of the same.

FIGURE III illustrates thelock set assembly attached to.

the wall in relationship to the escutcheon plate attached to the door, while FIGURE IV is a top view of FIGURE III taken through AA.

Referring specifically to FIGURE I, the lock set assembly 1 comprises a housing 2, fastening holes 6 extending. through the assembly for the purpose of rigidly affixing the assembly to the surface of the wall by means of fastening screws. A bolt actuating means 3, which may comprise a thumb turner or screw, rotates and causes bolt 5 to protrude beyond housing 2 or to be recessed within housing 2. The precise mechanism of the lock set assembly 1 will be further described in FIGURE II. Spring loaded fasteners 4 are caused to protrude beyond housing 2 by the thrust of the springs and are adapted to be engaged in aligned recesses in the escutcheon plate, which is mounted on the door.

Referring specifically to FIGURE II, similar elements of FIGURE I are similarly numbered. Fasteners 4 are spring loaded by means of springs 7 which are designed to exert sufficient force on the fasteners to hold the door in position, but are adapted to allow fastener-s 4 to be recessed when an opening thrust is applied to the escutcheon plate so as to open the door as hereinafter described. Bolt actuating means 3 extending through thepart of a bolt extension 10, which extension comprises shoulders 11 and a curved slot 12.

The bolt extension 10 has walls 12a which extend upwardly to substantially the distance between the far-Pv plate and the back plate of the housing 2. This permits free lateral movement of the bolt and bolt extension so as to extend and recess bolt 5 with respect to the housing without undue vertical play. Thus, as thumb screw 3 is rotated, circular member 8 is rotated causing cam 9 to move upwardly and downwardly within curved slot 12 thereby causing the bolt extension 10 and the bolt 5 to move backwards and forwards within housing 2. As pointed out heretofore, bolt 5 in its recessed position is within the housing. The extent to which the bolt can move outwardly is controlled by shoulders 11 and one side of the housing. The extent to which the bolt can move inwardly is controlled by the back edge 13 of the bolt and the other side of the housing. For reasons hereinafter given, cam 9 should never lie in the horizontal line extending transversely of the rotatable axis of the circular wheel 8 since, under these conditions, the back thrust of the slide in the escutcheon plate would not function to release the bolt to its recessed position.

FIGURE III illustrates the lock set assembly 1 rigidly aflixed to wall 14, and the escutcheon plate 15 affixed to door 16 in alignment with the lock set assembly. It is to be noted that door 16 overlaps wall 14. Spring loaded fasteners 4 of the lock set assembly are seated within aligned recesses 17 of the escutcheon plate. These fasteners may comprise any suitable material as, for example, nylon type fasteners and the like. The outward thrust exerted on the fasteners 4 by means of the springs 7 and the alignment of the fasteners with respect to recesses 17 are such that, under normal conditions, the door will be securely held in alignment with the lock set assembly until an opening thrust of a predetermined magni tude is exerted on the door by means of the inner knob 18 or the outer knob 19. When an opening thrust of a predetermined magnitude is exerted by either knob, it will be sufficient to cause fasteners 4 to move backward against the thrust of the springs and thus permit the door to be readily opened. These fasteners, in turn, will be recessed when the door is again closed until they are in alignment with recesses 17 of the plate when they will protrude into these recesses, thus securely holding the door in a closed position.

The escutcheon plate 15 is U-shaped in design and wraps around the door as illustrated in FIGURE IV. The escutcheon plate is rigidly affixed to the door by means of knobs 18 and 19 and connector 29 extending through the door 16. Under certain conditions, it may be desirable to secure additional privacy within the room and, therefore, bolt actuating means 3 is turned so as to cause bolt to protrude from the lock set assembly and to enter into a bolt slot 21 of the escutcheon plate and into a recess in door 16 and thus prevent the opening of the door by a thrust on either knob. The escutcheon plate is further provided with an emergency slide 22 which extends along the inner side of the outside of the escutcheon plate. This L-shaped emergency slide 22 has a head section 23 which is positioned along the end of the bolt. Thus, emergency slide 22 is actuated by emergency slide knob 24 movable within an emergency slide knob slot 25. Thus, as emergency slide knob 24 is moved forward or outwardly within slot 25, head 23 functionsto exert a thrust against the end of bolt 5 causing the same to be recessed Within the housing assembly 2. This then permits the door to be opened by a thrust on the knob causing fastener 4 to be recessed as hereinbefore described.

Thus, the present invention is particularly adapted for use in conjunction with all types of surface mounted doors. It is particularly desirable for use in conjunction with surface mounted bellied doors wherein the middle is bellied and wherein both sides have relatively thin edges. As pointed out heretofore, the escutcheon platewhich wraps around the door edge has three holes in its edge, two of these holes are seats for the two spring loaded 4 latches or fasteners which may be of any suitable material, but are preferably of nylon or other equivalent material. Upon closing the door, these spring latches set in alignment with the holes in the escutcheon plate, thus providing positive closure. When additional privacy is desired, the bolt in the lock set assembly will slide with vertical type pressure into the third hole in the door han dle edge. This action of the bolt is controlled by an inner turning means or slide or equivalent means, mounted on the lock set assembly. Also, as pointed out heretofore, an emergency external opening element is a preferred embodiment of the invention which functions to recess the bolt-when an emergency exists.

What is claimed is:

' Improved apparatus for latching a surface mounted door to an opening in a Wall structure which comprises a lock set assembly, including a housing, adapted to be surface mounted on said wall structure, said lock set assembly comprising at least one protruding fastener adapted to be recessed against the outward thrust of a spring, a bolt adapted to be protruded without and retracted within said housing by bolt actuating means, and a U- shaped escutcheon plate adapted to be afilxed to said surface mounted door in alignment with said lock set assembly wherein said protruding fastener will seat in a recess of said escutcheon plate, said escutcheon plate having a face and an inner and an outer side and is adapted to be positioned about the edge of said door, a further recess in said escutcheon plate adapted to receive said bolt when said bolt is protruded, said escutcheon plate on the outer side of said door having in combination therewith an L-shaped slide actuated by slide means extending through a slot in said outer side, said slide being in relationship with the end of said bolt so that when a thrust is exerted in one direction on said slide means, said bolt will retract under the thrust of said slide, knob means on each side of said door connected by means extending through said escutcheon plate whereby an opening or closing thrust can be applied to said door thereby causing said fastener to be recessed so as to permit said door to be opened and closed.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 490,440 Jacobus Jan. 24, 1893 758,333 Pfieghar Apr. 26, 1904 1,533,826 Butterworth Apr. 14, 1925 FOREIGN PATENTS 824,289 France Nov. 3, 1937 42,400 Germany Feb. 6, 1888 14,916 Great Britain 1886 18,968 Great Britain 1902 

